The FINANCIAL — Seven out of 10 global respondents (69%) believe they will achieve all their financial goals for the future, but of those, just 28 percent trust their current planning will be enough, while 41 percent say they will need to closely monitor and adjust investments from time to time in order to best meet their financial expectations, according to a new study be Nielsen, one of the leading global providers of infromation and insights into what consumers wath and buy.
Nearly one-third of global respondents (31%) have no confidence they will meet their financial goals with either current or modified asset allocations. Across all 14 goals reviewed, global respondents’ intentions to save in the future are stronger than current saving activities for all but one goal—health issues (42% active savers vs. 41% future savers), according to The Nielsen Company.
Plans to save in the future are strongest among respondents in the Asia-Pacific, Latin America and Middle East/Africa regions, especially for intentions to fund their children’s futures, higher education, first- and second-time property purchases, personal luxuries, financial legacy, and new businesses. In North America and Europe, future saving intentions were comparatively lower for funding higher education, starting a business and preparing for certain life events, such as marriage or having a baby.
Nielsen information shows that for those who are actively saving now, health issues and unexpected household emergencies are priorities among more respondents at the global level (42% and 41%, respectively) versus saving for longer-term financial goals.
Saving for unexpected household emergencies drives the highest percentages of active savers in North America (39%), Latin America (38%) and Europe (32%), and the second-highest percent in Asia-Pacific (47%) and the Middle East/Africa (40%). Across all regions—Europe (65%), North America (61%), Asia-Pacific (56%), Latin America (49%) and Middle East/Africa (47%)—saving cash in the local currency is the primary investment strategy used to fund this goal.
Fifty-five percent of respondents in Asia-Pacific claim they are actively saving for health-related issues, as are respondents in more developing regions such as the Middle East/Africa (41%) and Latin America (38%). Respondents in these regions are also more likely to employ diversified strategies in saving for health issues, using a mix of local bank accounts, life insurance and saving plans. North Americans (33%) and Europeans (24%) are comparatively less likely to save now for health-related issues and are less diversified with regard to saving strategies, according to The Nielsen Company.
Active saving for longer-term issues such as retirement and children’s futures are priorities among one-third of global respondents (35% and 34%, respectively). North America and Asia-Pacific respondents are the most actively engaged in saving for retirement (39% in each region), exceeding the global average. Less than one-third of respondents in Latin America (32%) and the Middle East/Africa (30%) and about one-fourth in Europe (26%) are presently saving for retirement. In Europe, 40 percent of respondents indicate they have no intentions to save for retirement at all, compared to the global average of 22 percent who do not plan to save.
Current saving activities to fund their children’s futures are priorities among 43 percent in Asia-Pacific and 35 percent in Middle East/Africa, exceeding the global average. Respondents in Latin America (30%), Europe (25%) and North America (19%) are not as immediately engaged, according to The Nielsen Company.
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